Forest Stewardship Plan

What is a Forest Stewardship Plan?

The Forest Stewardship Plan (FSP) is a requirement of the Forest Range and Practices Act (2004). The FSP is a landscape level plan, which is focused on establishing strategies and results for conserving and protecting timber and non-timber resource values for forest management activities over the life of the plan. The FSP states measurable, enforceable results and strategies that must be consistent with objectives set by government for a variety of forest values (e.g. fish, water, biodiversity cultural and heritage resources, etc). The FSP is a plan, which shows how the AVCFC will manage all stated government objectives from a site-specific level to the landscape level over the life of the plan. This results based plan is intended to allow tenure holders to be responsive to changing market conditions and to allow forest professionals to be innovative in applying management strategies to meet and exceed environmental standards in a manner specific to their operating area.

The FSP is intended to be a succinct document stating the management objectives for the resources present in the operating areas or Forest Development Units (FDU) as they are called in the FSP. The FSP is not intended to state methodology or give direction regarding how the management objectives are to be met; that is the role of the AVCFC and their forest professionals to decide. The FSP results and strategies must be consistent with government objectives for the management of all resources, and they must be measurable and verifiable.

How is a Forest Stewardship Plan created?

Through a competitive bid process, Econ Consulting was contracted to prepare the FSP for the AVCF.  The first stage of FSP preparation involves pre-planning and information gathering.  This stage includes a review of the AVCF goals and legislated direction for forest management in BC and includes consideration of forest legislation, higher-level plans and existing FSP that overlap the AVCF tenure area.

The FSP text was then drafted and sent to the AVCF Directors for review.  Once the Directors were satisfied with the plan, the mandatory 60-day review period was initiated.  At this stage, local stakeholders are invited to view the FSP and attend a public open house to discuss and provide comment on the plan’s content.  Stakeholders include first nations, existing tenure holders, community groups and the general public.  The review period provides an opportunity for stakeholders to provide input into the AVCF’s management decisions.

Once the review period is concluded, the FSP is submitted to the Ministry of Forests Lands and Natural Resource Operations (MFLNRO).  The MFLNRO reviews the plan to ensure its content meets legal requirements.  The plan is then submitted to the District Manager (DM) whom will either provide written approval or rejection of the plan.  Once the DM approves the FSP, the AVCF can proceed with applications for operational permits to build roads and harvest timber.

Where in this process is the AVCF Forest Stewardship Plan?

The AVCF FSP public review period ended on March 18, 2011. The FSP has now been submitted to the Ministry of Forests Lands and Natural Resource Operations (MFLNRO).

Links to FSP Documents: